Ricky Ray gets his first crack at leading the Argonauts’ offence

Veteran back under centre, but Milanovich not ready to commit to QB going forward

Amid a season of turmoil that is threatening to unravel over team bickering, there are more questions than answers ahead for the Toronto Argonauts.

The biggest one is this: Who will be the starting QB come playoff time? Head coach Scott Milanovich has not committed to Ricky Ray beyond Friday’s game against the B.C. Lions at the Rogers Centre.

He wants to see what Ray has left in his arm and has pledged to go into the playoffs with the player “who gives us the best chance to win.”

“I don’t know if there is a right decision here,” Milanovich said Monday about giving the No. 1 job to Ray.

“I told Trevor (Harris) to be ready. He could come in at any time. I mean I’m not anticipating pulling Ricky Ray out of a game, but Ricky’s got to be able to perform well.”

Friday’s game will be Ray’s first start in almost a year and he’s not looking past that game.

“We really haven’t had a conversation about what will happen after that, and we really don’t need to,” Ray said.

The final game of the regular season goes the following Friday against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at the Rogers Centre.

The Argos (9-7) have a playoff position assured, but have been all but eliminated in the chase for first. The best they should hope for is second place and hosting a semifinal against either Hamilton or Ottawa.

Ray has pronounced himself “100per-cent” ready after off-season shoulder surgery.

Ray, who turned 36 last week, is not as mobile as Harris, but he has great feel for the pocket that allows him to slide laterally to find those open lanes.

“Ricky just has to show that he can play like Ricky,” Milanovich said. “If he’s able to do the things he’s always been able to do, that will be enough. If he can’t do the things he’s always been able to do, Trevor will get the call.”

Ray and Harris have a lot of respect for each other, so there is no quarterback controversy.

“If you didn’t have the quality of human beings that I’ve got, it could have been a problem,” the coach admitted.

On a team filled with rookies who can let their emotions get out of control, the quiet leadership of Ray may help settle the Argos down.

Last week, two linemen fought at practice and in Friday’s game some Argo players began sniping at one another. Vidal Hazelton and Chad Owens exchanged words at one point.

“We just had some miscommunica- tion,” Hazelton said post-game. “It’s nothing serious. He’s my brother, man. It was something minor about me getting out of bounds. I went up to him and apologized and let him know that it’s all good.”

Milanovich didn’t like some sideline behaviour by Tori Gurley and has told the leading TD catcher in the league that he will sit out Friday’s game.

Earlier this season, Hazelton was benched for a game too.

The coach says the Argos have gotten this far due to the unity in the locker-room and this is no time for frustrations to boil over.

“We can’t go where we want to go if we’re fighting each other,” Milanovich said.